New Delhi: The Petitions Committee of the Delhi Assembly has recommended action against the chief secretary and top officers of health and social welfare departments for
allegedly “sabotaging” the functioning of a elected government.
Committee member and MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj also alleged that holding back allocated fund for mohalla clinics and changing the method of payment of old age pension was a “conspiracy” to defame the AAP government before the Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections in December last year to help the BJP.
The two reports of the Committee were tabled in the Delhi Assembly on Thursday.
The reports urged the President of India and Union Home ministry to take action against Lt Governor VK Saxena, alleging that the funds for mohalla clinics and old age pension were stopped by the officers at his behest.
The chief secretary, principal finance secretary, health secretary and social welfare secretary were found guilty of “sabotaging” work of the elected government in the reports, said chairman of the Petitions
Committee Akhilesh Pati
Tripathi while speaking in the House.
The reports — ‘Conspiracy of Officials to Sabotage the Functioning of Mohalla Clinics at the Behest of Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor of Delhi’ and ‘Abrupt Stoppage of Pensions of Old Age Citizens in Delhi at the Behest of Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor of Delhi’ — were discussed by the MLAs.
The committee had on Wednesday tabled another report in the assembly and alleged that the functioning of OPD counters in state-run hospitals was sabotaged ahead of the municipal elections in 2022 and had demanded action against the L-G, the chief secretary and secretaries of the finance and the health departments.
“Such insensitive officers should never be given any frontline responsibility. It should be recorded in their service records that they are careless and insensitive,” Tripathi said in the Assembly.
He also added that the Centre was not paying its share of Rs 200 in the Rs 2000 pension provided to each senior citizen in the city.
Committee member and MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj said holding back allocated fund for mohalla clinics and changing the method of payment of old age pension was a “conspiracy” to defame the AAP government before the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections in December last year to help the BJP.
He said the old age pensions were stopped by the officers on the basis of a 2009 notification, thereby changing the method of payment. After the intervention of the Committee, it has now been assured by the officers that the pensions will be paid to the elderly by 8th day of every month, he added.
“Pension system was running smoothly but the Social Welfare department’s new director used a 13-year-old notification to sabotage it. The process of disbursing pensions was transferred from the headquarters to the districts causing confusion and the whole system came to a standstill for months,” Bharadwaj said.
He said the funds for mohalla clinics were stopped merely because a cabinet note copy was attached with a file.
“Mohalla Clinics have become an arena of political vendetta. Salaries of doctors and staff and tests stopped due to withholding of funds,” he claimed.
“The chief secretary gave protection to the health secretary and finance secretary and got the second instalment of funds meant for mohalla clinics stopped. For the first time since mohalla clinics were started, the finance department sought the cabinet note and certain amendments made in the scheme which were never asked before,” he said.
The Committee has asked the chief secretary of the Delhi government to submit action taken reports on its recommendations over the two matters, within 30 days.